


When Lights Go Out

by SwordOfSierra



Series: When Death Will Rise [1]
Category: Overlord - Maruyama Kugane & Related Fandoms
Genre: Other
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-17
Updated: 2018-11-23
Packaged: 2019-08-24 23:10:08
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,582
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16649614
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SwordOfSierra/pseuds/SwordOfSierra
Summary: When the Slane Theocracy angers Ainz Ooal Gown, his storm of wrath threatens to erode them to nothing. Will they weather the storm, or will the lights of the Theocracy go out? Fan Volume 14 with changes to the overall story.





	1. Chapter One: Into the Darkness

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Overlord, it's characters, locations, or content in any way!
> 
> This is a fan volume 14, with a few changes to the overall story. In this story, Ainz is more powerful, and the guild Ainz Ooal Gown had more world items (in the novel they had 11 or 12, in this story they had 28 or 29. Doesn't really matter, as the Guild with the second most had 3. Most of the WCI won't make their appearance anyways and will have little to no change on the story). The reason I am unsure is because the Red Orb Ainz has under his rib in, in fact, a world item, and I'm not sure if it was included in the count). It's effect is it grows more powerful the longer he has it, and upon activation consumes around 5 levels. Similar to one of the Twenty, World Savior. I'm naming the Red Orb World Killer, twin of World Savior and Unofficial member of the Twenty.
> 
> Massive thanks to Nyx the Author for Betaing
> 
> Want to chat with me in real time? Join my discord here  
> https://discord.gg/HjJSYbP
> 
> Summary: When the Slane Theocracy angers Ainz Ooal Gown, his storm of wrath threatens to erode them to nothing. Will they weather the storm, or will the lights of the Theocracy go out?
> 
> Please note: this story may contain flashback/memory scenes, or events of the past. They will be marked with * at the beginning and end of the scene. Italics represent thinking, anything in [ ] is a spell, Item, or Skill

Chapter One: Into The Darkness  
-  
*Mr. Toshi Nasho , Lead Artist of Yggdrasil,

In regards to your recent inquiry, I have indeed noticed the achievements of Momonga, guildmaster of Ainz Ooal Gown. In response, I have designed special rewards for Mr. Suzuki. I have also decided to keep his achievements confidential, as I fear it may upset the trust the public has in the Yggdrasil Development Team. They may believe we decreased the difficulty of the boss, when that is entirely untrue.

Best regards,

Hino Evoth, Head Developer of Yggdrasil*  
-  
Ainz Ooal Gown sat on his throne of the 10th floor of Nazarick. Any onlooker, like the maid Nana who was currently assigned to him, would say he was thinking, delving deep into the complex mind of Nazarick's Supreme Overlord.

But that was not the case.

Ainz Ooal Gown was troubled.

He had killed hundred of thousands of humans, and oversaw the facilitation of one of the worst events in recorded human history, if not the worst, an event known everywhere as the Jaldabaoth Event. Tens of thousands of humans and demihumans were locked away in prison camps and tortured. Possibly worse, an unknown amount of them were slaughtered.

But what was troubling Ainz was not those countless lives.

What was troubling him was one man, by the name of Demiurge.

I don't know how much longer I can keep this façade up.

He looked at the clock on the wall. Well, calling it a clock was generous, as it only displayed time as the intervals of Dawn, Noon, Dusk, and Midnight, with a number counting down to the next interval.

It's almost Dawn, He thought. I will have to deal with Demiurge at some point. But I will leave that issue to the future me.

He slowly got up from the throne. Nana jumped to attention.

He had work to do.  
-  
Capital of the Re-Estize Kingdom

Lakyus walked alone towards the castle, enjoying the fresh air of the kingdom. She preferred to focus on the good things in the city. This was not at all strange for her, as she would normally do such a thing, but she believed now was more important than ever. After the battle of Katze Plains, the Kingdom has been suffering large amounts of famine, a lack of workers, and a seemingly incurable state of depression for many nobles.

Funny calling it a battle. It was nothing more than a massacre. Now the Kingdom is on a downward spiral, and no other country is willing to lend aid.

She thought back to all that she- Blue Rose- had accomplished. But now that the Kingdom is falling, they will likely have to find a new country to operate in. She had heard wonderful things about the Sorcerer Kingdom, but she was hesitant to move to the country that caused the devastation to the Kingdom.

As she was lost in her thoughts, she arrived at the front of the castle. The guard posted outside gave here a quick once-over glace, and allowed her entry. Snapping out of her thoughts, she entered through the gates.

Walking along the soft carpet, she made her way to Princess Renner's bedroom. She had a long history with the Golden Princess, and Lakyus considered her among her closest friends.

After the door knocks were answered with a sweet sounding 'Come in!' she opened the door and let herself in.

Renner was sitting at a round table made of polished marble, with a tea set in front of her. Behind her, about 3 feet back, stood Climb. He was ridged and stood at attention, with nothing but a quick glance at Lakyus.

"Lakyus," squealed Renner. "So good to see you! Please, sit down. It's been too long."

"Good to see you too, Renner"

Lakyus sat down and poured herself a cup of tea. As she did so, Renner flashed a grin.

"What?" asked Lakyus, confused at what she was grinning at.

"Nothing."

As Lakyus finished pouring the tea, Renner asked, "What brings you here. I highly doubt you came just for tea."

After taking a sip from her mug, Lakyus gave her reply.

"Perceptive as always. I was looking for advice on what to do next. The Kingdom is doomed, and it will take the Adventurer's Guild with it. The Theocracy has no need for adventurers. As such, I'm trying to plan our next move. I'm hesitant to go to the Sorcerer Kingdom or the Empire."

Renner nodded, and was silent for a moment.

"Considering the damage done by the Sorcerer King, I can't exactly say I'm surprised. While it's true the Theocracy has no need for you, why have you ruled out the Empire?"

Lakyus replied with a monotone voice. "The Empire is a vassal country of the Sorcerer Kingdom. It probably wouldn't be much better than going to the Kingdom in the first place."

Her reply made Renner chuckle. "Have you been to the Empire since then? It is still self governing, and still run by the Emperor." Hearing this, Lakyus' eyes widened.

"It's still run by the emperor? I figured the Sorcerer King would have killed him by now."

"Just because he's undead does not mean he enjoys death."

Climb twitched at the word 'death'. The man he most looked up to, Gazef Stronoff, was killed in a one sided battle against the Sorcerer King. Gazef's friend and best rival, Brain, was still looking for a replacement for the deceased Head-Warrior. But his time was running out. Soon, there may not be kingdom to protect.

"Climb, could you go fetch me more tea please?"

Renner asked Climb such, and he conceded, leaving the room. Very disappointed that her precious Climb had left, even temporarily and by her asking, she turned back to Lakyus.

"I believe that the best move to make is to go to the Sorcerer Kingdom. I have heard rumors that powerful gear is cheap there, and that once the King announced his Labyrinth to be done, adventures from far and wide will flock there. In addition, even though he is undead, he is a peaceful ruler. I have even heard that the citizens barely remember what it's like to be hungry, with food being so cheap there."

"Is the food really that cheap?"

Renner laughed. It was a laugh that sounded like angels singing, and it filled Lakyus with joy. "Indeed. The normal price for wheat is 15 silver for high-purity grain, the kind high-class nobles use. That same quality wheat is 2 silver in the Sorcerer Kingdom. The reason it's so cheap is because the crops are farmed by the undead, which do not fatigue or tire, nor do they need to eat."

Lakyus thought about everything she just heard. There are many upsides to going. The upsides actually outweigh the downsides.

She decided. Renner had always been able to convince her of things she didn't originally want to do.

"It will be tough to convince the others, especially Evileye…" Lakyus trailed off. "But they highly value your opinion. That will make it much easier to convince them. Thank you."

"Anytime you need help, you know you're welcome to come see me."

Lakyus smiled  
-  
"So we are all in agreement?"

A gravelly voice came forth from the man. This man was Raymond Zarg Lauransan, Cardinal of Earth and Commander of the Six Scriptures. He was a middle-aged man, and had been in command of the scriptures for a long time. As he looked on at the other Cardinals, one voice answered him.

"I believe so. We have found the fortress of Ainz Ooal Gown, so I believe we should send a scouting mission. We may even be able to conquer the damn place."

Yvon Jasna Dracrowa, Cardinal of Light and the highest authority of the Slane Theocracy. An old man, he had witnessed old Cardinals retire, and new ones take their place. As such, his opinion was highly coveted by others. "But who should we send?"

There was silence for a moment. Raymond broke it. "I suggest we send the Clearwater Scripture, and the Captain of the Black Scripture. There were small gasps around the room. They were all thinking the same thing.

"Does this really warrant the use of a God-kin?"

Raymond knew not who asked the question, but responded anyways. "It's a precaution. We know the demon maids are under the control of the Sorcerer King. It will take a God-kin to take them out. And if we fail, we will not lose the Clearwater Scripture."

There was a chorus of agreements. Yvon spoke. "In that case, I suggest we move to the next subject." He took out a weathered old book from his robe. The other Cardinals gasped. "This book is the only item that Surshana has personally written. We have been unable to translate the contents, but we have determined the book's title. It is Surshana's journal."

Maximilian Oreio Lagier's gasp was louder than anybody's. As the Cardinal of Darkness, he was obsessed with Surshana and his belongings. "Does this mean we may be able to translate it?"

Yvon frowned. "It has an unimaginably powerful enchantment on it. It's preventing translation, so the most we can do wait. From what we can tell, it will be forcefully translated if a powerful enough wave of energy strikes it. Unfortunately, not even Zesshi can generate such a powerful wave, and the artifacts left behind from the Gods would most likely destroy the book."

"Nothing we can do then. Just have someone look after the book."

Maximilian glared at Raymond. "Who is worthy enough look after a document personally written by the strongest of the Six Great Gods?" Raymond pondered the issue. After a moment of silence, he had his answer. "Give it to Thousand Mile Astrologer. She will be perfect to look after such a treasure."

Maximilian relented. "Very well, I will take it to her personally."

"Good. I will ready the Clearwater Scripture and the God-kin."

A smile crossed Yvon's wrinkled face. "Then let us begin."  
-  
Sylvin Getsis stood before Raymond. As the Captain of the Black Scripture, he stood among the top of the Theocracy, at least in terms of power. However, anyone truly knowledgeable would know that Zesshi Zetsumei stood above him. Even so, he still outclassed her in terms of leadership skills. Behind Sylvin stood the Clearwater Scripture, who specialized in stealth and assassination.

"Your mission is to raid the fortress of Ainz Ooal Gown, the undead that has caused so many problems."

The raid force nodded. However, Sylvin raised a hand. Raymond jerked his chin at him, indicating he had permission to speak.

"What if we encounter the Sorcerer King inside?"

His question raised a commotion from the Clearwater Scripture. They had wanted to know the same thing.

"If you are to encounter him, Sylvin will instruct you whether to retreat or attack."

Sylvin saluted, indicating that he understood. He had saved the Black Scripture multiple times with his leadership, and everyone present knew he knew what he was doing. It was a kind of trust born from a mixture of awe, experience, and fear.

"You have your mission; get in, look around, get out. Now go!"

"""Yes Sir!"""

After they had departed, Raymond smiled. This would be the first step to killing that bastard undead. But he still worried. Sending a God-kin only emphasized that fact. He was worried the Clearwater Scripture would perish. However, he was confident that the God-kin would return, even if it meant failing his mission. But he knew Sylvin. He would not come home empty-handed.

Indeed, Sylvin would return bearing a trophy.  
-  
Sylvin and the Clearwater Scripture walked.

They walked, and walked, and walked.

However, they never stopped. They had all trained their bodies to the limit. And no group was better at walking than the Clearwater Scripture. They never rode horses, unless the Cardinals deemed it necessary. After all, horses were loud and obvious, the last thing a group of assassins would want.

So they walked

It had been days since they left the Theocracy. They had long run out of food and water. Not that it mattered. They had magic that produced clean, drinkable water, and they had all been trained to survive in the wild. Sylvin did the hunting, as he was the strongest and fastest. He had been easily been able procure food for their party of nine. During their walk they seen countless undead, but that was normal for the Katze Plains. They slew the ones in their way, and continued marching.

After 8 days, they reached their destination. But they didn't see a building. All they saw were gentile, rolling hills; some large, others small, and many in between. The Clearwater Scripture made sounds of confusion. Wasn't this supposed to be Ainz Ooal Gown's stronghold?

"Sylvin, sir…" began the first seat of the Clearwater Scripture. The members of that particular scripture had no names. Their names were taken from them to help disconnect them from humanity, and to make it harder for them to be tracked. When they were referred to, they were simply called Seat 1, Seat 2, Seat 3, and so on.

Sylvin put up a hand to silence him. He knew what he was about to say. "This is definitely the place we were told about." He pointed to the largest hill. "The stronghold may be hidden under one of the hills. I suggest we start at the biggest."

Seat 2 clapped. "As expected of the first seat of the Black Scripture! You may be right." While his praise was truthful, he also felt slightly ashamed. Why had they not thought of that? Were they really so stupid? Seat 2 sighed.

"Put up your enchantments. Show me what being an assassin really is!" instructed Sylvin. The entirety of the scripture used cloaking magic. They were so well hidden that Sylvin could barely sense them. He smiled. Then, focusing on the mission, he enchanted himself with cloaking magic.

"[Unknowable] [Invisibility] [Deodorant] [Silence]"

As Sylvin enchanted himself, he cast one more spell. [Friendly Vision]. It allowed cloaked units to see other cloaked units, albeit only friendly ones. With a hand motion, he ordered the others forward.

When they reached the top of the hill, they discovered there was no top. They also found out the hill was hollow. Inside rested a massive tomb, surrounded by four mausoleums. They were curious to find what was inside, but their orders came first. Sylvin had a gut feeling that the large tomb in the middle was what they were there for.

Once again ordering everyone forward, Sylvin slid down to the ground. The drop was vertical, so the only way down safely was to stab his sword into the dirt and slide. While his main weapon was a spear, he always kept a sword for emergencies. When everyone had reached the bottom, they moved to the tomb's entrance. Flanking the entrance on either side were rows of mighty columns.

As soon as they all crossed the door, the air's temperature plummeted. With a light shiver, Sylvin kept advancing, making sure not to lose the others behind him. They walked past many skeletons, but none seemed to notice them. Confidant they were undetectable, they traversed deeper into the mighty structure.

They soon saw a staircase going down. As they slowly made their way towards it, a voice stopped them.

"What do we have here? Some foolish invaders?"

Walking out from behind a pillar was beautiful woman. She had red hair, styled in two braids, and wore a maid outfit. Sylvin readied his weapon, and the Clearwater scripture behind him followed suit. Casting off their cloaking magic, they made themselves fully known.

"My my, quite feisty."

She drew her weapon, a massive thing that looked like an oversized religious symbol.

Sylvin knew exactly what this was. What she was.

She was their first obstacle.

She was a one of the demon maids.


	2. Chapter 2: Stepping on a Dragon's Tail

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Overlord, it's characters, locations, or content in any way! This is a fan volume 14.
> 
> Summary: When the Slane Theocracy angers Ainz Ooal Gown, his storm of wrath threatens to erode them to nothing. Will they weather the storm, or will the lights of the Theocracy go out?
> 
> Please note: this story may contain flashback/memory scenes, or events of the past. They will be marked with * at the beginning and end of the scene. Italics represent thinking, anything in [ ] is a spell, Item, or Skill
> 
> I am not that great at writing fight scenes. I am reasonably confidant that I can world build or do character building, but not so much fight scenes. This one is the first one I've ever done, so they will get better as the story continues (Hopefully).
> 
> If the grammar mistakes are too numerous, let me know in your Review. I had the first chapter Beta-ed (Shoutout to Nyx the Author for his amazing job) and there were around 5-10 mistakes, which for a 3000+ story, is not that much (IMO). If enough people complain, I asked Nyx if he would beta again, and he said yes.

Chapter Two: Stepping on a Dragon's Tail  
-  
The demon maid stood before then, a wall standing between the raid party and the staircase down.

"If you think I'll let you worms invade Nazarick, you're sorely mistaken."

The maid made no effort to conceal the hostility from its voice. The Clearwater Scripture shuddered. It was not cold enough to make them shiver, nor had any hostile magic been cast on them. It was her tone. Only the mighty, or the foolish, speak with such a tone, and the monster before them was anything but foolish.

Sylvin glanced back. Their exit was blocked by a mass of skeletons. While the group could have easily beaten them, it would have left opening for the maid to kill them.

Sylvin knew that had but one option. Attack the maid, while some hold the skeletons.

"Why don't you introduce yourselves, foolish invaders? Or have you not even been taught the simplest of manners?"

Sylvin sighed. "I am Sylvin Getsis, Captain of the Black Scripture. The men behind me are nameless, for they have no need for them." He was putting off fighting for as long as possible, waiting for the maid to let her guard down- even an inch!

She chuckled, "What is this, a court? This is a battle! No need to be so formal." She bowed, "My name is Lupusregina Beta. I feel our time together will be short, but I hope you enjoy yourselves anyways. I know I will." A sadistic grin crossed her perfect features, a harsh reminder that she was a monster, no matter how human she looked. She twirled her weapon, with such speed that they felt quite the breeze emanating from it. It was a simple act, but displayed her sheer power.

Sylvin didn't hesitate. He charged at the demon, making a stab with his spear. It was blocked by the weapon, which despite its size and momentum, came to an immediate stop. The Clearwater Scripture was frozen for a moment, but quickly followed after the God-kin.

Lupusregina held off Sylvin with her weapon while using her hand to redirect the attacks coming from the Scripture. It was an intense melee. The assassins did all they could to help Sylvin, who was facing the ferocious maid in a head-to-head battle amongst a pool of sparks.

Lupusregina moved her body to the side, and Sylvin stumbled forward, unable to stop his inertia. With the free chance she got, she swung her massive weapon, and impaled an assassin on its tip. Despite her current circumstances, she smiled. She was covered in blood, with more landing on her every second, and she loved it. She restarted combat with Sylvin, and their intense melee ensued.

Sylvin never let his guard down. The beast before him was mighty, at least on par with himself.

But…

Slowly but surely, the beast met its match.

The maid was being forced back, and cuts began appearing on its arms, face, and torso. 3 members of the Clearwater Scripture were dead, their corpses in multiple pieces strewn around the room. But Sylvin never let up.

After a few more minutes of fighting, the beast succumbed to its injuries, and collapsed to its knees. The battle had been long, and Sylvin was panting. Dropping his spear, he walked behind her, picked up one of the swords from the ground, and drew his own. He positioned himself behind her, and put the blade of one sword on the front of her neck, with the other's tip touching her nape.

"You… Lose…" he panted. "You have two options. Come with us peacefully, or die here." They would be leaving after this. They could not afford to face any more of the Sorcerer King's demon maids, or whatever other horrors waited deeper in the tomb.

"I will never betray the Supreme One. You could never understand the depth of my loyalty." She rasped. "You have sealed your fate. You will never live to be an old man. You will be killed, slowly, painfully, and I will be there watching."

"No," he said, "you won't."

With a metallic ringing sound the maid's head dropped to the floor, and the headless body fell over in a pool of blood. He picked up the head and his spear, and dropped the swords. There was no need to give the sword he picked up back to its owner. Said owner will never be able to wield a weapon again. As he and the others turned to leave, Sylvin was stopped dead in his tracks. He felt an intense wave of bloodlust from behind him.

But that wasn't what stopped him.

He had felt that bloodlust before.

He paled.

The last time he felt that bloodlust, many members of the Black Scripture had been killed, including Kaire. It was the same bloodlust as…

He turned around, and felt his blood run cold. Standing there, in a fancy, deep crimson dress, stood a platinum haired female vampire. The very same vampire he had encountered before, one that he felt was even stronger than Zesshi Zetsumei.

"Im-Impossible. This can't be real. You were killed. And even if you weren't, we had used [Downfall of Castle and Country]…" His ranting was cut off by the vampire, who screamed at them.

"HOW DARE YOU! HOW DARE YOU KILL LUPUSRAGINA BETA! THE SUPREME ONE WILL HAVE YOUR HEAD AND BATH IN YOUR BLOOD! [BLOOD SPEAR]"

The pool of blood from the maid rose into the air in the shape of spears, and hurtled towards the raid group. Sylvin barely managed to block it, but every other member was impaled.

Sylvin dropped the head and ran. How could she still be alive? He was terrified. This vampire had killed Lady Kaire. Even I couldn't stop her. And yet she spoke of a 'Supreme One', just as the demon maid had. That could only mean one thing.

She was a subordinate of Ainz Ooal Gown.

He reached the wall of dirt he slid down, cast [Fly] on himself, and ran. Glancing back, he saw the vampire wasn't following him.

Once far enough away, he cast [Teleportation], and found himself looking at the gates to Hunferdas, capital of the Slane Theocracy.

The vampire is alive. This changes things.

Sylvin shivered.  
-  
Ainz sat at his desk in E-Rantel, riffling through papers. As he stamped the last one 'Approved', he pondered who could have made that suggestion.

A visit to the Elf Kingdom? Was that Aura, or Mare?

As he set the papers down, he heard a low beep. In the top right corner of his vision was a message

-One New Guild Notification

The hell? This is new.

As he got up to teleport to Nazarick, he felt another beep in his mind, this one of a higher tone.

He answered the [Message].

[Albedo, what is it?]

[Lord Ainz,] she said through barely contained rage. [Something has come up.]

[Interesting, I had just received a Guild Notification of some sort. Wait to tell me until I get to the Throne Room.]

[As you wish.]

Ainz canceled the [Message], and cast [Greater Teleportation]. The next moment, he stood in the throne room. All the Guardians, excluding Gargantua, stood looking at him. The Pleiades were there too, behind the Guardians. Even further stood Fluder Paradyne, Ainz's so-called apprentice.

"Why is Fluder here?"

Fluder made no movement of response. He was clueless as to why he was there as well. Albedo answered for him. "As your apprentice, I believe we should start involving him more in more of Nazarick's affairs." Fluder bowed, his wrinkled old face broken with a smile. "Thank you, Lady Albedo."

As Ainz nodded, he noticed an absence. "Where is Lupusregina? Has she not arrived yet?" He was curious, as the maid was not normally late. Albedo's reply shocked him.

"Lupusregina Beta is dead."

…

…

…

WHAT?

Ainz was in disbelief. He was angry. "Who killed her? Did she leave Nazarick?" Albedo shook her head. "I believe that is what the notification you got is about."

Ainz walked over to the throne, sat down, and summoned the [Staff of Ainz Ooal Gown]. He sent a mental message to the staff.

Open the notification.

As he did so, screens opened up around him, showing the entrance to Nazarick in different angles. A group stood there, each of them bearing a sigil he recognized. "The Slane Theocracy?" As he looked on, he saw Lupusregina walk out from behind a pillar. She said something, but he could not read the lips, and there was no sound. May have to change that, he thought. He watched a long, intense battle ensue, and watched as Lupusregina fell to her knees. A man, who Ainz presumed was the leader, spoke something to her, but once again, Ainz was clueless as to what it was. Lupusregina responded, and this time Ainz understood it.

"I will never betray the Supreme One."

Ainz felt his non-existent heart swell. Only for it to be shattered by the man decapitating the maid.

Everyone present looked at Ainz, and noticed the crimson lights in his eyes disappear.

Is he not angry?

As the Guardians thought such, the room began to shake. Cracks appeared on the walls, and Fluder fell down. It was clear what caused such a tremor.

Ainz Ooal Gown was furious.

His emotional suppression system was outmatched, and repeatedly failed to calm him down. The rage and killing intent radiating from the undead king burst forth in waves. Demiurge soon realized that it wasn't just this room that was shaking.

Such power. All of Nazarick is trembling.

Ainz's form began to flicker, occasionally changing, just for a fraction of a second, like a flimsy illusion, to a blackish-gray, hulking figure, one that towered over even Cocytus. He slammed his hand on the armrest of his throne, and the shockwave nearly knocked Albedo, who stood closest to him, down.

Fluder was terrified. He had seen his master unhappy, but this makes every other time look like he was giving out sweets to children. He knew the Theocracy was responsible for this, and he pitied the fools who caused this.

With a tap of his staff, streams of gold began to appear from nowhere. The streams collected to form a humanoid shape. The room stopped shaking as Ainz finally calmed down. Then, like the magic it was, the gold began to change color, until it was completely gone, leaving behind a naked maid with flaming red hair. Incredible, Fluder thought. He can revive his subordinates even without a corpse.

As the maid slowly fell to the ground, it's eyes opened, and looked around. Her eyes fell on Ainz, and she began to cry. "Lord Ainz," she began. But she never finished. The room began to shake once more, even harder than before. Seeing the maid had rekindled Ainz's ire, and the maid fell to her knees, prostrating. "Lord Ainz, forgive me for my failure." The light flashed in her lord's eyes once more, but it was no longer a light, but a deep crimson flame that leaked out and heated up the air around it.

After a moment, the room stopped shaking, and the flames dimmed to pinpricks of light.

"I am not angry with you, Lupus. I am angry with those who dare stain the floors of Nazarick with their filthy feet, and kill one of my precious children. Stand up, and know that you have not failed."

"But I was killed. I failed to stop them."

"Silence. I demand you stop saying you failed."

The maid rose, still shaking slightly and with red eyes. Ainz opened his inventory, tearing a hole in space, and drew out a pristine white robe. He threw it to Lupusregina, then stood and walked over to her. He knelt down, and after she had put on the rode, picked her up.

"This was not your fault. You were never created to stop a raid force. You were created to delay the enemy until backup arrives. So, as I see it, you did your job perfectly. So calm down." He set the maid down, and her moved seemed to have improved. "However, this can not go unexcused. The Slane Theocracy must pay for what they have done. It seems I will once again have to take everything from Surshana"

Indeed, Ainz had met the Theocracy's gods before. At least, that's what he believed based on the information he had. If he was right, then once again, Surshana and his friends will fall before the might of Ainz Ooal Gown.

Shalltear spoke up, "My lord, the human who escaped seemed to know me. He had said I was supposed to be dead, and even if I wasn't, I was supposed to be under the influence of something called [Downfall of Castle and Country]."

Ainz chuckled, as that was the conformation he needed to know who those Six 'Gods' were.

"Well, he's not exactly wrong. But no matter." He activated his obsidian aura, and misty blackness gathered behind him. "It is time to declare war. The world will know what it means to make an enemy of Ainz Ooal Gown."

Shalltear told him that they had managed to capture one of the invaders. While no one could see it, Ainz smiled. It was time for war.

"Fix the walls." He ordered. "And send the captured invader to Neuronist. I will enjoy watching work."

The time where history repeats itself has arrived once more.  
-  
Sylvin stood before the Six Cardinals, waiting for what came next. He had reported that he fled from Nazarick, but the precise detail had been omitted. He had been told to wait until he returned for the full report. Now, he was here, and he had to relive what had transpired during his failed mission.

Yvon was the first to ask. "So, what exactly happened? It's not like you to run from a fight." Sylvin hesitated, then began to speak. "We had entered into the tomb and reached a staircase before encountering one of the demon maids. We engaged it in combat, and managed to kill it. However, we lost three members of the Clearwater Scripture."

"That doesn't explain what happened to the others." Dominic urged him to continue.

"After the battle, we were about to retreat, when a vampire appeared behind us. It killed the rest of the scripture, and nearly killed me." Maximilian snorted. "You were defeated by one measly vampire? How far has the Black Scripture fallen?"

"It was the same vampire that nearly killed Lady Kaire."

There it was. With those words, the entire room broke out in chaos. "SCILENCE!" yelled Yvon. They were acting like animals, and it angered him as much as it embarrassed him. Yvon waited for the room to calm, then looked at Sylvin. "How is that possible? You confirmed that [Downfall of Castle and Country] had been activated. Even though it was interrupted, it would have left her in a mindless state, and not move unless attacked."

The God-kin shook his head. "I don't know, but the effects of the Artifact is definitely gone. The only way I know that could have erased that effect is to kill the target then revive it afterwards. But the vampire was no weaker than it was before."

"Well, it seems we will-" A light shaking interrupted Yvon. To a normal person it seemed like a simple earthquake, but Sylvin's trained senses told him otherwise.

Maximilian looked confused. "What kind of earthquake was that? It was pathetic!" Dominic glanced around the room, making sure nothing had fallen. "That was no normal quake." Sylvin corrected. "It was neither magical nor natural in origin." Just as he finished speaking, the room began to shake once more. But this shaking was incomparable to the first time. The Cardinals braced themselves, and Sylvin crouched to avoid falling. Suddenly, a wave of bloodlust washed over them. Yvon paled, trying to resist the urge to vomit. "Wha- what the fuck was that?" However, no one paid attention to him. All eyes fell to a withered old book lying on the table. Dark violet flames covered the edges of the book. The title, formally unreadable, now was wreathed in the same purple flame. Then, they vanished, and what they left behind made the Cardinals gasp. The book's title was now readable, and this title made them pale once more. With the arrival of the Sorcerer King, everyone in the room judged that these words appearing now were not a coincidence. Four words.  
-  
Surshana's Guide to Survival

Inside the cover, on the first page, read 'Chapter One'. Next to those words, where the chapter's title should be, characters rapidly changed one after another. Weird, but not the weirdest part. On the next page read:

You've angered the beast,

The times are dire.

Gods now burn, engulfed in fire.

This beast is a god, the chosen one.

And the moon may soon eclipse the sun.

You may soon see the depths of hell,

But no one knows. Only time will tell.  
-  
Sylvin hoped, because the book may hold a solution.

He despaired for the same reason.

This was Surshana's, an undead's, book after all.

He hoped the Theocracy could accept said solution.

Not for the first time today, Sylvin shivered. Because he knew what the beast was, and what caused the quake.

It seemed Ainz Ooal Gown had learned of the maid's death.

He had trodden in the dragon's tail. The question now was…

What would burn?


End file.
